I’ve always loved flying. Every summer I would enter a mechanical bird and travel to the island of Dominica. These days, I use a seaplane to travel between St. Croix and St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands on holidays. Thanksgiving is probably the only time that I get/want to travel to St. Croix. Anyways, the flight.

Take Off…

I sit in my seat in the crowded plane. This isn’t a 757, so you’re personal bubble overlaps with the person next to you. The pilot starts up the propellers and we start moving forward across the water. At first it feels like your in a boat as the waves rock you this way and that way. As the plane picks up speed, you get the feeling of being a rock that is skipping across the water. Each wave causes the plane to bounce out of the water. After a moments, the feeling of rising into the air takes place. I watch as the floats stop making contact with the water. We start to soar.

Airborne…

If you’re a believer in a higher power, you imagine his hands under the wings keeping you in the air. You may believe that he is holding the plane up as it flies. Scientists see the combination of thrust and lift in play; lower pressure on the top of the wing and whatnot.

Mesmerized…

No matter what you believe, the view out the window is spectacular. The water is beautiful shades of blue and blue green. The cars become toys, people, ants. You get a view of nature that many do not get to see. This larger scale allows you to take in so much more than you would have on the ground or in a boat. Depending on what kind of flight you’re on, the view remains the deep blue of the ocean or the white of clouds.

Ears pop as the body adjusts to the decrease in pressure. My headphones distract me from the sensation in my ears. Music also takes away from the noise made by the engines. The loud hum is made almost nonexistent as the music fills my ears and soul. I usually put on tranquil music that adds to the peace that I feel in the air.

My destination is fifteen minutes across some tranquil blue water. There are not that many clouds because I’m not that high up. Still, the clouds that we do encounter are tantalizing. They make you want to try walking on them, taste them, feel them. Sometimes I wish that I was flying next to the plane rather than flying in it. I envy the birds that soar through the air.

Wishful…

I always look out for Dolphins or a whale when I fly between my two home islands. I don’t even know how happy it would make me to see a family of dolphins splashing across the water or a whale breaching the surface with a big splash. There’s nothing today but shades of blue. I make out different shapes with the clouds. In an attempt at irony, one of the clouds is in the shape of a dolphin. Funny nature, funny. Halfway there. Time to take a nap. Naps makes the flight feel even shorter.

Home…

I open my eyes in time to see my destination. Landing is always the worst part. The angle of approach is gut wrenching. You anticipate the splash into the water that seems takes forever. The plane glides over the water for some time before is makes contact. Once again skipping across the water like a stone. When the splashing stops, the bobbing returns and the plane is driven to the dock.

The passengers spill out of the plane and are happy to have had a safe flight. I’m happy to be home for another Thanksgiving.